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JR's Blog: Matt Hardy, Todd Grisham, Bart Gunn KO of Dr Death, Tag Teams Returning?, Brisco vs. Lesnar, Sauce It!

Posted: Aug 25th 2011 By: CMBurnham

Thanks for stopping by and paying us a visit. Be sure and check out this link to browse the JR's product page at WWEShop.com, http://www.wweshop.com/Category/JimRoss.

Random thoughts:

Lively crowd in Edmonton. Enthusiastic fans can make a live TV show SO much better. Thanks Edmonton for the hospitality and smiles.

Hopefully, the fans in Tulsa will be just as rowdy this Monday in the BOK Center for Monday Night Raw.

Irony of the week, I left 108 degree weather in Oklahoma to the warmest day of the year in Edmonton which was in the upper 80's. Nice.

The newest, Legends Roundtable debuted this past Monday on WWE On Demand. It's regarding major, outdoor wrestling events and the WWE TV crew really produced a nice show. I love to participate in these tapings and we hope to do more in September. We've gotten some excellent feedback on it.

Anxious for college football to start as my Oklahoma Sooners are the pre-season picks to win the National Title. No team since Southern Cal in 2004 has gone wall to wall as the #1 team. Prehaps OU is due. Being back on weekly travel w/ WWE affects my football plans to some degree but where there's a will there's a way. OU @ FSU in Tallahassee is the night before the WWE Night of Champions PPV in Buffalo, New York and that travel could be dicey if I am required to be at that WWE PPV on Sunday September 18. That decision is TBD but I plan on being at the game either way.

Questions from our Twitter followers @JRsBBQ:

Favorite OU moment? Being on the sideline in Miami for OU's National Championship in 2000 which was, ironically, a win over Florida State. Had a great visit with Ron Simmons that night whose jersey is retired by FSU. Check out photo gallery here on the site for photos from that night.

Who's the one wrestler that I always wanted to call a made for? Jack Brisco. Would loved to have called a Jack Brisco vs. Brock Lesnar bout in WWE. I refereed a Jack Brisco match but never actually got to broadcast one of his bouts.

Do I really sign the extra large cards that come with the JR's package on WWEShop? Absolutely. Any signed item from me is real and not a faux signature.

Thoughts on Todd Grisham going to ESPN? I think it is a good move for all involved. Todd will fit well at ESPN with former WWE alums Jonathan Coachman and Max Bretos. Grish knows sports, especially soccer, and is very comfortable doing studio work. He's a good human being and a talented guy who I know will do wonderful work in Bristol.

Do we ship to Australia? Yes, as a matter of fact Australian fans are ordering briskly from us at http://www.wweshop.com/Category/JimRoss. Recently received a cool photo via Twitter from a fan down under.

Are there any wrestlers from Oklahoma? WTH?? Aside from WWE HOF'ers the Brisco Brothers, Cowboy Bill Watts, Johnny Mae Young, Leroy McGuirk and the greatest of all time, Danny Hodge, not many.

Will Sting ever wrestle in the WWE? If it hasn't happened by now, I have serious doubts that it ever will.

This one is from me. Why do people Tweet us daily to ask if we ship our products to the UK? Absolutely, the UK is the #1 sales territory for us outside the USA. http://www.wweshop.com/Category/JimRoss

Are tag teams making a come back in WWE? I can only say that I hope so and if last week's Raw is any indication it would seem that there is a good chance the tag team scene is going to receive added exposure and the chance to develop. There are many younger fans today who have never experienced quality, tag team wrestling done on a major scale as was done in WWE in generations past. Some fans actually are bigger fans of tag team wrestling than one on one bouts.

What are my thoughts on the controversey surrounding Matt Hardy? (Been asked this one a ton the past couple of days.) We brought Matt and Jeff to the WWE and they had some amazing outings over the years as many remember. They were, generally, excellent to work with and I like them a great deal on a personal basis. However, I am not in touch with either, only know what I read about them, and can only hope that whatever issues they may have or have had are put behind them much sooner than later. I wish them only good health and happiness.

Did Bart Gunn's KO of Dr. Death cut Steve's career short? I'd say indrectly that it did. The Brawl for it All was an illconceived trainwreck to begin with and when Bart KO'ed Doc, in the process Doc tore his quadraceps muscle. The former Sooner never recovered totally from that major surgery. We signed Doc toward the end of his career and thought we could get a good year or two out of him until the quad injury occured. Injuries are an unfortnate part of the business.

Do I think Brock Lesnar will return to the WWE? Same answer as always....as it relates to an in ring appearance I'd say 'maybe' but only when his UFC career ends and then most likely for a one time deal. Brock will NEVER go back on the road and of that I'm sure.

Thoughts on Eddie Gilbert? Underrated wrestler with a brilliant mind who was obsessed with the business almost to a fault.

Will I watch UFC 134? More than likely and I see Anderson Silva winning at home in the main event. Not a stark revelation with that prediction by the way. Anxious to see the atmosphere of the PPV in Brazil where MMA is massive. I expect to see a soccer crowd type of excitement.

Who will be in the next rivals DVD? No idea but I think that there are plans to do more ala the upcoming Hitman-HBK 3 DVD set. Just received an advance copy of that one that I am going to watch ASAP.

Would 'managers' work effectively in today's wrestling world? Of course. What's old is new again in the genre and if executed and postitioned properly the role of a 'manager' or any other term one chooses to call it would be effective. I essentially see Ricardo Rodriquez as a 'manager type' for Alberto Del Rio and is and will continue to be an asset for the presentation of the WWE Champion. Vickie Guerrero is basically a 'manager' for Dolph Ziggler.

Who will win the Super Bowl? Lots of pariety in the NFL but I think the Super Bowl winner will be an AFC team.

If I could broadcast with one person that I've never worked with before in a two man announce booth who would it be? JBL without question. It'll never happen as we're both too 'Southern' but the dynamic would be intriging in my view.

Why don't I answer the question, which we receive multiple times daily, of what is my favorite match of all time? I simply can't because I don't know. I've been blessed to have been at the right place at the right time and have seen a ton of great ones. To single out one would be unfair and haphazard. Maybe some day, if I do a book or a DVD, I'll try to narrow it down to a top ten. Maybe.

Will the Warrior ever go in the WWE Hall of Fame? Please Lord let's not start a trend here....I really don't know. Does Warrior deserve recognition? Based on many others who are in the WWE HOF I'd say of course. Would Warrior's live acceptance speech be memorable? Oh, yeah.

Keep the questions and comments coming to our Q&A Section of the site and on Twitter @JRsBBQ where we now have over 212,000 followers.

We sincerely appreciate everyone's support of our products now being distributed exclusively on line by WWEShop.com. Our brand is growing globally which is truly rewarding.

Boomer Sooner!

J.R.

Tags: JIm Ross, WWE, Jack Brisco, Brisco Brothers, Bill Watts, Mae Young, Leroy McGuirk, Danny Hodge, Sting, Steve Williams, Eddie Gilbert, Warrior